Life in prison for man who killed wife on cruise ship

(SAN DIEGO - AP) A teacher of troubled youth who married his high-school sweetheart after being separated from her for 30 years was sentenced to life in prison Thursday for beating his wife to death in their cruise ship cabin.

Robert McGill apologized for his actions but did not explain why he repeatedly punched and strangled his wife of five years, Shirley, on July 14, 2009, during a five-day Mexican cruise to Cabo San Lucas to celebrate his 55th birthday. He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in July.

"I don't really have the words to make anyone feel any better," McGill said in a steady voice that showed no emotion. "I know I have done a horrible thing."

McGill, 57, told FBI investigators after the killing aboard the Carnival Elation that he hallucinated after drinking a half bottle of Mezcal and seven or eight beers. McGill had said he believed a scorpion that was in the Mezcal bottle had set him off.

U.S. Chief District Judge Irma Gonzalez did not buy that explanation, noting he went up to the deck after pummeling his wife in the cabin bathroom and never called for help. The FBI says McGill cleaned himself up, smoked a cigar on the deck, and told friends that he killed his wife.

McGill called his son shortly after the killing and said, "Is it on TV yet? I killed Shirley by accident, well, not by accident. I'll tell you all about it," according to the FBI.

The brutal end to what seemed like a storybook marriage puzzled the judge and many others in the courtroom. McGill was a longtime teacher of troubled youth for the Los Angeles County Office of Education who doted over his wife after they reconnected on the Internet before a high school reunion.

The Los Angeles couple wed in Las Vegas. Friends said McGill appeared overjoyed.

The judge said McGill's heinous crime overshadowed his law-abiding past.

"Whatever good he has done in the past, whatever decency he had in the past, he left on the bathroom floor on July 14," she said.

Shirley McGill's family, including her parents and children, sobbed throughout the hearing as they took turns telling the judge how they felt betrayed.

"Bob, you're a liar," said Leslie Curry, Shirley's daughter-in-law. "You led us to believe you were a great guy who loved Shirley."

Defense attorney Todd Burns asked the judge to limit the sentence to 11 years, three months in prison. He said McGill is a good person who made a horrible mistake and was "extremely intoxicated" when he killed his wife.

"There's no good explanation for this," Burns said. "There's never going to be an explanation."

A teacher of troubled youth who married his high-school sweetheart after being separated from her for 30 years was sentenced to life in prison Thursday for beating his wife to death in their cruise ship cabin.

Robert McGill apologized for his actions but did not explain why he repeatedly punched and strangled his wife of five years, Shirley, on July 14, 2009, during a five-day Mexican cruise to Cabo San Lucas to celebrate his 55th birthday. He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in July.

"I don't really have the words to make anyone feel any better," McGill said in a steady voice that showed no emotion. "I know I have done a horrible thing."

McGill, 57, told FBI investigators after the killing aboard the Carnival Elation that he hallucinated after drinking a half bottle of Mezcal and seven or eight beers. McGill had said he believed a scorpion that was in the Mezcal bottle had set him off.

U.S. Chief District Judge Irma Gonzalez did not buy that explanation, noting he went up to the deck after pummeling his wife in the cabin bathroom and never called for help. The FBI says McGill cleaned himself up, smoked a cigar on the deck, and told friends that he killed his wife.

McGill called his son shortly after the killing and said, "Is it on TV yet? I killed Shirley by accident, well, not by accident. I'll tell you all about it," according to the FBI.

The brutal end to what seemed like a storybook marriage puzzled the judge and many others in the courtroom. McGill was a longtime teacher of troubled youth for the Los Angeles County Office of Education who doted over his wife after they reconnected on the Internet before a high school reunion.

The Los Angeles couple wed in Las Vegas. Friends said McGill appeared overjoyed.

The judge said McGill's heinous crime overshadowed his law-abiding past.

"Whatever good he has done in the past, whatever decency he had in the past, he left on the bathroom floor on July 14," she said.

Shirley McGill's family, including her parents and children, sobbed throughout the hearing as they took turns telling the judge how they felt betrayed.

"Bob, you're a liar," said Leslie Curry, Shirley's daughter-in-law. "You led us to believe you were a great guy who loved Shirley."

Defense attorney Todd Burns asked the judge to limit the sentence to 11 years, three months in prison. He said McGill is a good person who made a horrible mistake and was "extremely intoxicated" when he killed his wife.

"There's no good explanation for this," Burns said. "There's never going to be an explanation."

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